


The One Thing I Cannot Destroy

by reigenonice (TardisType221b)



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Bonding, Hurt/Comfort, Imprisonment, M/M, Mental Link, Season/Series 02 Spoilers, Soulmates, Touch-Starved, morally gray
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-02-25
Packaged: 2019-10-30 19:05:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17834372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TardisType221b/pseuds/reigenonice
Summary: Aaravos has been alone for a thousand years, imprisoned for leading humanity into the dark. The only thing to accompany him are the visions of his future, a future in which... the loneliness will end.When the mirror in his prison changes from something completely ordinary, Aaravos finally meets his future.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This idea refused to leave me alone once I finished Season 2! I hope you all enjoy it.

“You have betrayed us all!” 

Aaravos looked around at the rest of the High Council of Elves as they were hurling accusations at him. One elf for each of their different races all sitting on the other side of the crescent shaped table, looking at him with utter contempt. He had been called there under the guise that it was a typical meeting but Aaravos already knew before he had even set foot inside what this was about. Even without his power, the guards at the entrance were a dead giveaway. 

But he could not see how it would end, his power did not deign to bless him with that outcome. 

“We sent them away to the West due to their vile actions, only to find that it was _you,_ one of our own kind, who gave the humans the means to commit such atrocities.” The sky elf said. 

“They are feeble and struggling, you were lording yourselves over them. It is of no fault of their own that they were not born connected to a Primal Source. Know this, if it wasn’t me, it would have happened eventually. That human mage was closer to figuring out the truth then you know, the secret of the Arcanums.” Aaravos explained and he could hear an audible gasp echo throughout the room. 

“I showed him how to connect to magic, but it was his choice to stray into the dark, that is all. But I wonder... what you would have done if he had actually figured it out. If there had actually been a human who could perform Primal Magic. Oh wait, I already know. _You would have killed him.”_

“We would have done no such thing!” The sunfire elf exclaimed. 

“Oh, please don’t lie to me, you are foolish if you believe that you could succeed.” Aaravos scoffed. 

These foolish elves, they didn’t understand, magic wasn’t just about being born with the arcanum inside of them, it was more than that, and that human had been so close, ushering in a new age of magical exploration. 

But they didn’t want that, they didn’t want humans to grow powerful, they wanted to keep them suppressed. 

Now the humans had a way to fight back, a way that may be atrocious and vile, but a valid method nonetheless and thus they were exiled before they could even try. 

Typical. 

“They are already gone now, left to fend for themselves, so what do you want from me?” Aaravos asked. 

“You need to pay for your crimes. Guards!” Guards rushed into the room and grabbed Aaravos from behind.  

As their hands grabbed his arms, he could feel the effects of a binding spell already taking place. He began to thrash in their hold, but the magic crept up his arms, keeping him in place as the guards held him. Damn them, they knew exactly what they were doing. He was not an easy person to take down… how long were they planning this? Aaravos gritted his teeth and prepared himself to cast a counter spell, but he quickly realized it was far too late. 

The moonshadow elf walked up to where he was being held, and looked him directly in the eye. 

“You stood at that border with us, watching us exile the humans, all that time knowing it was your fault. You mastered all of the Primal Sources and yet... that wasn’t enough for you?” The moonshadow elf questioned. “You condemned an entire race just to seek more power!” 

“I did nothing of the sort, I did not force the humans into the dark, they chose it for themselves.” 

The moonshadow elf shook his head. “You were always so mysterious... speaking so cryptically, it’s no wonder the foolish humans were tricked by your sly words. But no more.” He pulled out his ritual bindings and started wrapping them around where the guards were holding Aaravos’s arms behind his back. 

Why didn’t his power warn him of this? Why did he never foresee what was most important?! 

But his hands were bound he could not draw runes, so he had to rely on less... magical techniques. He lashed out as the binding spell weakened. He refused to let himself be imprisoned like some criminal! He was the strongest being in this room! They could not contain him! He was merely humoring them by even agreeing to come to this farce of a gathering and now they were trying to imprison him? Punish him for what they believed to be crimes, as if they weren’t already corrupt! 

He had already broken out of the guards hold had already started to cast his magic, but he was too late, the binds on his wrists had activated, manipulated to suppress his connection to the arcanums. His very being was cut off in a way that made him ache. 

So, he only had one option. 

For the first time, he took that darkness into himself, and could only pray that it would be enough. 

~*~ 

Aaravos opened his eyes blearily. What was going on? His head was pounding. 

“Ah, it’s good to see you’re awake now.” 

Aaravos bolted upright despite how much it hurt his head. That magic... it had taken so much out of him, every limb in his body ached, his vision swam, and it was only sheer willpower that kept him from passing out again. 

From what little he could make out, he was somewhere completely different from the council room. 

“I hope you like what you see. You’re going to be looking at it for quite a while.” 

Aaravos turned around and saw him, the moonshadow elf that had bound him so cruelly. 

“ _You!”_ He exclaimed and lunged, all thoughts of magic and pain forgotten. But he went right through him. An illusion! He should have known... 

“Oh, did you really think I was here? As if I would ever condemn myself to this place.” 

“Where am I?” Aaravos questioned. “What’s going on?” 

All he could remember was lashing out with dark magic, sucking the life out of the guards next to him, to cast the most powerful spell he could muster in an attempt to free himself. 

Clearly, he did not succeed. 

“Welcome to your prison. You will be staying here until you have proven that you understand the consequences that dark magic has.” 

“What? You can’t do this!” 

“We can, and we will. The bindings are still on you, so don’t bother to try Primal magic. There will be no way of getting out until you truly realize the consequences of your actions. Until you understand that dark magic is an atrocity, it corrupts everything and everyone. You should have died before using it, before teaching it to others. We should have killed you, but instead the High council has offered you mercy, has constructed this place... just for you.” 

The moonshadow elf sighed. “It’s a shame you had to go down this path, you were the most gifted elf of this generation, and your kind is so rare. You probably don’t remember but it took the four of us on the high council to bring you down, even with your connection to the arcanums suppressed.” 

“Let me go.” Aaravos demanded. “If you don’t, I will find a way out of here one day, magic or no magic. And when I do everyone you’ve ever known, everyone you’ve ever loved is at risk. You all have betrayed me; this magic will not hold forever.” 

“Good luck with that.” The moonshadow elf scoffed and disappeared, leaving Aaravos so very alone. 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

“Why haven’t I seen them?” Aaravos asked aloud to himself. “Isn’t this when I would need them most...?” 

_“When you are ready my child. No sooner, will they come to you.”_ Aaravos remembered his mother telling him, when he was very small. 

“What else do I have left here...?” He was desolate and empty; his magic had been cut off from him for so long he felt numb. The markings on his chest had gained dark spots where he had been corrupted in his effort to break free. He stared at the bindings on his arms with utter contempt. 

With them off he could have done something! Anything! 

How long had he been here? 

It was as if time didn’t pass. There were no windows, no doors. Just a room that was completely bare, the only exception being a stream of water coming down one of the walls and two holes in the ground, one which seemed to be a breeding ground for worms and bugs of all kinds. Save for the water, the room was quieter than death itself. There was no one to speak to and nothing to speak of, nothing especially extraordinary or interesting. 

Clearly nothing but the best for the elf who had once been their equal... 

...or rather a fate worse than death. 

At this point he'd memorized the location of every groove and crack in the stone walls, counted every speck of dust that adorned the room. He'd grown tired of the sound of his own voice, longing to hear the chime of another, yet the silence offered no comfort in such a place. The only sound that accompanied his prison was the slight rush of the water down the wall and the twitching and scurrying of the bugs. His skin itched to feel the warmth of sunlight, his eyes ached to be able to see another moonrise. His mind had grown numb from the lack of quite literally anything. The longer he stared at the barren walls, the more desperate he grew. Surely there had to be a way out? Surely, they would let him out? 

The questions danced in his mind as his eyes frantically searched the solid walls once more. His hands slid up the slabs, palms resting against the cold surface before balling themselves up. 

"I understand now!” Aaravos shouted, voice cracking in desperation as he banged his fist against the wall, which was already full of scratches. “I know what I did was wrong!” 

No answer. 

“Please!” 

No answer. 

“Please...” 

Still no answer. 

Aaravos slumped to the ground. 

What was the point anymore? No one was listening, or if they were, they didn’t care. He was trapped in this place with no escape. There was nothing left for him. 

~*~ 

_“You called us in for an emergency meeting. I assume it is for something of note.”_ The sky elf stated. 

Aaravos was startled to hear the sound of another voice after so very long. His visions of the future had never been quite so vivid, always small snatches of time that he could barely make out. Lately all they had been was these same four walls, so much so that if it wasn’t for the unique shimmer and fade that seeing the future entailed, he would have never known that it wasn’t the present. What was so different this time? 

The moonshadow elf nodded _“Of course. As you know I have been in placed in charge by the dragon king and queen of monitoring the prison of Aaravos.”_

_“Yes, and he’s stayed put for the past few decades, don’t tell me he has managed to escape! I thought your bindings couldn’t be broken by anyone!”_ The sunfire elf exclaimed. 

_“Do you really doubt me? You all should know by now I’m the best at what I do.”_ The moonshadow elf retorted, sounding slightly offended. “ _No, the news I have to share is different... I’m afraid Aaravos... has died.”_

“No, please! Don’t stop... I can’t take it anymore!” Aaravos exclaimed as he felt the vision fading away. The first time seeing other faces, hearing other voices, after so long, was much too fleeting. 

Try as he might, the vision faded away and the troubling realization came to him. This was a vision of the future, soon he would be dead, having never left this place, most likely having no way to prevent it. 

Maybe that wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe then the loneliness would end. 

~*~ 

“Well you look like a mess.” 

Aaravos startled awake at the sound of another voice, bolting upright from the cold hard ground that he was sleeping on. 

It was him. The moonshadow elf that had imprisoned him here. But Aaravos knew by now, he wasn’t really here. It was just an illusion. 

Maybe he was hallucinating instead but no matter what, he had to try. He was desperate. He didn’t know how much longer he could take this, he could already feel his mind was no longer as sharp as it used to be. 

He shifted his position on the floor to be on his knees. 

“Please...” He begged. “Have mercy.” 

“I never thought I’d see the day. The great and mighty Aaravos, who always lorded his mystical star magic and talent to connect to all of the primal sources over us, begging me for mercy. You are quite a sight.” 

“Please, I’ll do anything.” 

“Then, Bring. Him. Back.” The moonshadow elf demanded glaring down at where Aaravos was on the ground. 

Aaravos blinked, looking up at him confused. 

“Oh, you don’t know? Your future vision didn’t inform you? I suppose you aren’t all knowing after all. My husband was always soft on the humans, a little like you in that way. He was a healer, always looking to help. Healers are rare among moonshadow elves as you should know... 

Aaravos wracked his brain and eventually it clicked. “He was with us! At the border... when the humans were sent away.” 

“He was. Using his to staff to heal our soldiers from injuries in the skirmishes that arose. The humans remembered him, they knew... that he was the most vulnerable of us, and they came for him.” The moonshadow elf’s fists were balled up at his sides and he was trembling with repressed emotion. “It was a trap! They lured him in with the guise that a human child was hurt. Then they slaughtered him with their unspeakable magic... magic that _you_ taught them.” 

“I’m sorry... I know now that doing so was wrong.” Aaravos tried to apologize, but the moonshadow elf was having none of it. 

“You can’t bring him back, of course not! I know that even your atrocious black magic cannot reverse death once she has grabbed hold of her victim. He is dead because of you... and for that there will be no mercy.” 


End file.
